To The Golf Courses of Yesteryear

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Enghuizen Castle Golf Club. (1926 – 1931)

The Keppelse Golf Club was set up as Golfclub Enghuizen on January 23rd 1926. At that time there were only seven other golf clubs in the Netherlands so the club today is the eighth oldest. The first twenty-five years the club was called Golfclub Enghuizen, because Golf initially played on a site behind the (now disappeared) castle of Enghuizen in Hummelo.

The initiators were Mr. J.P. Coops (1875-1957) and the very sporty R. J. C. (Rein) Baron of Pallandt of Keppel (1888-1938), who from 1924 was resident of the castle in Keppel. Ms M.C. Countess of Rechteren Limpurg, born baroness Van Heeckeren of Enghuizen became First Chairman, or should we better say Chairwoman, of Golfclub Enghuizen which at that time in the Netherlands was almost certainly unique. The fact that it was planned to build the golf course on her grounds certainly has helped to that honourable nomination. Mr. J.P. Coops became Secretary and Dr. J.H. Van Heek (from Huis Bergh te's Heerenbergh) became board member. A course was soon laid out just behind the Oranjerie of Castle Enghuizen. Shortly afterwards, the first matches were organized, for which Mrs Van Pallandt donated a cup. However, playing on the ground caused necessary difficulties, as it was actually common meadows where the cows grazed while the greens were protected by barbed wire.

The quality of the greens was such that there was a local rule “ball lost on green – no penalty”. In February 1927 the news was, that the links are getting better and better during this season, and as the grass is not growing and the links are rolled well, it is very playable. The club also decided about a clubhouse, the castles Orangery. Accordingly, it meant that Enghuizen had the smallest club in the country – with only 13 active golfers in 1926 – but the biggest clubhouse!

The Orangery used as the Enghuizen clubhouse.

In 1931, the club moved to a terrain on the Oude Zutphenseweg. It was initially the part of today’s course where the holes 14 and portions of holes 13 and 15 now lie. On this piece of land nine-holes were laid out by gentlemen Coops and Westerbeek van Eerten. As a result, there were no less than thirty crossings on the course.

It is therefore not surprising that in an Australian golf magazine the course was called the most dangerous golf course in the world. Certainly a bit of an exaggeration as there were only thirty-three members in 1936.